Kara Dennison
October 3, 2022 
Some of our favorite anime boys just can’t seem to get those three little words out. Lots of them have kept their best girls waiting for years… even decades. October 3 is National Boyfriend Day, which sounds like as good an excuse as any!
That said, these guys have had plenty of chances. A special day for it still may not be enough. The good news is, these girls are pretty smart. We have a feeling they already know… but we’d still love to hear it said.
Guy Shishioh, GaoGaiGar
We’re kicking off National Boyfriend Day with anime’s most eligible cyborg. Guy Shishioh, the star of 90s yuusha series GaoGaiGar, has made the most of his rough life. When his astronaut dreams are crushed, he comes back better, stronger, and faster. With his high school sweetheart back at base making life-or-death calls for him, he’ll pilot his robot to victory.
Given this series’s fine vintage, we feel okay giving you one small spoiler: unlike his fellows on this list, Guy does eventually confess. So why is he here? Because frankly it takes some seriously earth-shattering business to get the words out. If you haven’t watched the series in full, we won’t spoil it for you.
Ryo Saeba, City Hunter
Anime’s original mokkori boy may seem like an odd choice for a Boyfriend Day list… unless you’re an invested City Hunter fan, of course. In that case, you know exactly what’s up. Ryo may make a big show of wanting to get with every single girl that moves. But deep down, his long-time partner Kaori is the only woman for him.
During the series, we see Kaori’s own feelings for Ryo very clearly. And once in a while, we get rewarded with what seems like a confession… or as close to a confession as he’ll ever get. It takes ’til Angel Heart, the extremely sad alternate universe sequel series, for us to realize just how much he loves Kaori back.
Ataru Moroboshi, Urusei Yatsura
Honestly, the works of Rumiko Takahashi could comprise a Boyfriend Day piece all their own. She has an amazing way of writing compelling couples, many of whom can’t quite make their feelings known. Leading the charge is Ataru, the beloved of Lum Invader in Urusei Yatsura. She’s very up front with her feelings. He… is less so.
It’s to the point where his reticence is a key feature of their relationship. Mamoru Oshii even tackled it in the film Beautiful Dreamer. It takes a literal dream demon to get this guy to confess that Lum is the person he most wants to see. So, will that change in the new series?… Probably not. But in a weird way, we kind of hope it doesn’t.
Still in the mood for love? Give these anime rom-coms a try.
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